The Tragically Hip’s Saturday night concert officially has a place to happen.
The parking lot behind Deep Cove Brewers and Distillers on Dollarton Highway will play host to a live screening of the final show of the iconic Canadian band’s Man Machine Poem tour.
Between 500 and 1,000 of the Hip faithful are expected to gather around a 10 by 20-foot LED screen mounted on a semi-trailer to watch the CBC broadcast of what may be the band’s final performance.
Lead singer Gord Downie was diagnosed with incurable brain cancer earlier this year. The band, a Canadian mainstay from the days of mixtapes to the era of downloadable content, elected to go on what is expected to be their last tour.
Saturday’s event is meant to be a tribute to the band, according to Ingrid Doerr, the founder of North Shore Green Markets and organizer of Saturday’s event.
“I really want to promote it as a family event,” she said. “Bring your own chair, bring your own blanket. It’ll be a nice hangout night.”
The event is intended to help raise money for cancer research through donations to the B.C. Cancer Society, according to Doerr.
District of North Vancouver council voted to put $4,000 towards staging the show after Coun. Mathew Bond championed the idea on social media and in council chambers earlier this summer.
“We think of the Tragically Hip as really the music of a generation of Canadians,” he said.
The crowds can start to gather at about 3 p.m., according to Doerr, who said everything would probably shut down by 10 p.m. The concert is scheduled to air from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
The speakers will be aligned to minimize sonic intrusions on the neighbours, according to Doerr.
“We’re going to face the music in the other direction so it shouldn’t affect them too much, and the loud music will end at 8:30 p.m.,” she said.
A beer garden and food trucks should provide sustenance for Hip fans.
